ll

Perspective
Empowering young people
with climate and ocean science:
Five strategies for adults to consider
Rachel Kelly,1,2,8,* Laura G. Elsler,1 Andrei Polejack,1,7 Sander van der Linden,3 Kajsa Tönnesson,4 Sarah E. Schoedinger,6
Francesca Santoro,5 Gretta T. Pecl,2,8 Michael Palmgren,9 Patrizio Mariani,10 Diz Glithero,11 Karen Evans,13
Christopher Cvitanovic,12 John Cook,14 James Bartram,15 and Mary S. Wisz1,16
1Sasakawa Global Ocean Institute, World Maritime University, Malmö, Sweden
2Centre for Marine Socioecology, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS, Australia
3Social Decision-Making Lab, Department Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
4Swedish Institute for the Marine Environment, Gothenburg, Sweden
5IOC-UNESCO, Paris, France
6Office of Education, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Washington, DC, USA
7Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovations, Brası́lia, Brazil
8Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS 7000, Australia
9Marine Educational Centre, Malmö, Sweden
10Technical University of Denmark, National Institute of Aquatic Resources, Lyngby, Denmark
11Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition, Ottawa, ON, Canada
12Australian National Centre for the Public Awareness of Science, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia
13CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, Hobart, TAS 7000, Australia
14Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
15CC-IUCN Secretariat, 1740 Pink Road, Gatineau, QC J9J 3N7, Canada
16Senior author

*Correspondence: r.kelly@utas.edu.au
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2022.07.007

SUMMARY

Young people are the leaders of the future. Many young people are concerned and overwhelmed about the
impacts of climate and ocean change and are emerging as advocates for action. However, challenges
including social injustice, climate anxiety, nature disconnectedness, and fake news limit their ability to pro-
tect their future from the impacts of climate and ocean change. The conventional dissemination of new sci-
entific knowledge alone is not enough to prepare and empower young people to cope with these challenges.
Here, we present five actionable strategies to engage and empower young people with climate and ocean
science in support of long-term sustainability: inclusion of diverse voices, active dialogue-based science
learning, connection to nature, critical thinking skills, and co-created visions of a sustainable future. These
strategies can help to strengthen young people’s engagement and agency to meet climate and ocean chal-
lenges. Together, the strategies can synergistically empower young people to have a say in shaping their sus-
tainable future.

INTRODUCTION
The world’s climate and ocean are in an unprecedented state,
affected by biodiversity loss, pollution, and emissions.1–3 These
changes heighten the risk of exceeding the planetary bound-
aries that define a safe operating space for humanity and affect
all aspects of human well-being.4 The young people of today,
defined here as children aged 0–18 years and youth aged
15–24 years,5,6 are increasingly concerned and worried about
the impacts of climate change and other human impacts on
the ocean.7
Youth-led climate strikes, lawsuits demanding government
action on carbon emissions, and vocal advocacy demonstrate
that young people are increasingly engaged in their collective fu-
tures under climate change and are willing to take action.8 Youth
leaders, such as Greta Thunberg and Daniela Fernandez, chal-
lenge the traditionally limited position of young people in global
discourse and decision making on climate and oceans. The
change they demand is systemic and requires reevaluation of
the way decisions and actions are made in society.9 Still, many
opportunities to engage young people in climate change and
ocean dialogue (e.g., climate Conference of the Parties) are often
considered tokenistic and do not enable them to genuinely
participate and contribute to climate deliberations.10 Given that
current governments in power are knowingly bestowing young
people with the burden of climate and associated ocean
change,2 there is an urgent need to equip and empower young
people with the knowledge, skills, and experiences to deal with

One Earth 5, August 19, 2022 ª 2022 Elsevier Inc. 861

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these challenges ahead—to help them to prepare for the realities
of their future.7
In 2021, the United Nations (UN) commenced a 10-year ambi-
tion to foster ocean science for the benefit of humanity—the UN
Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (herein
referred to as the UN Ocean Decade; 2021–2030). The goal of
the UN Ocean Decade is to achieve transformative science
solutions for sustainability. Connecting people and the ocean,
the UN Ocean Decade aims to enhance capacity building in
regions and among groups that have limited agency. It also
seeks to increase societal knowledge and engagement and
achieve true (i.e., generational, gender, geographic) diversity in
ocean issues. This includes engaging young people given that
they and future generations are, and will be, the most heavily
affected by current threats to the planet.11 The UN Ocean
Decade Generation Ocean (GenO) movement, for example, fo-
cuses on turning ocean knowledge into action to provide current
and future generations ‘‘the chance to live in a sustain-
able world.’’
Today’s young people face many challenges caused by social
injustice, climate anxiety, nature disconnectedness, fake news
and misinformation, and their lack of agency in formal decision
making on issues that affect their well-being now and in the
future. In this perspective, we present strategies to empower
and collaborate with young people to meet global climate and
ocean challenges, including through UN Ocean Decade actions.
This paper aims to help other adults and adult-led organizations
to avoid ‘‘reinventing the wheel’’ in efforts to connect with young
people on climate and ocean issues and science.
The strategies we present—inclusion of diverse voices, active
dialogue-based science learning, connection to nature, critical
thinking skills, and co-created visions of a sustainable future—
will support young people growing up in modern times. We
developed these strategies by drawing on our collective exper-
tise as researchers and practitioners in the fields of climate
and ocean science research, engagement, and education.
They are rooted in recent advances in the natural and social sci-
ences, psychology, education, and law, among other fields. The
five strategies bring these insights and approaches together and
aim to improve engagement, strengthen climate and ocean liter-
acy, combat fake news and misinformation, and foster agency.
We present examples where these strategies have been used
to effectively support young people and empower them to
achieve impact.
CHALLENGES OF GROWING UP TODAY
A sustainable future is one that is equitable and fair and em-
powers all people to have a say and to participate in shaping
the future (e.g., Fischer et al.12). The current lack of collective
global climate and ocean action brings many ‘‘social (in)justice’’
challenges into focus. Such challenges include the dispropor-
tionate impact of climate change on vulnerable populations
and responsibility of intergenerational equity. Vulnerable and
marginalized communities of society are, and will be, the most
significantly affected by climate impacts. Those communities
include young people, the elderly, the poor, the mentally ill,
and those from less privileged nations and parts of society.
Today, young people are inheriting climate change problems
862 One Earth 5, August 19, 2022
Perspective
they have had little to no influence in creating.13,14 Consequently,
young people find themselves marginalized15 in that they have
the highest stakes in climate decisions but are not represented
in these decision-making processes.
Current institutional settings and legal frameworks are typi-
cally formal, prescriptive, and top-down and limit young people’s
opportunity to contribute to climate and ocean discourse.16 In
addition, these frameworks give limited recognition to young
people in law and decision making,14,17 which reduces the ca-
pacity of formal processes to transfer agency to generations
that will be most affected by climate change. While young people
overwhelmingly believe that we are in a state of climate crisis
(69%18), they are mostly poorly represented in (environmental)
governance bodies.17 A recent global report revealed that 65%
of young people believe that governments are failing them.7
Mechanisms for including the voice of young people in co-
creating change in climate and ocean governance are urgently
needed.19,20 Successful climate justice cases in recent years,
including in the US, Germany, the Netherlands, Colombia, and
Pakistan, demonstrate a legal precedent for the protection of
future generations and the inclusion of young people in decision
making in the context of climate change.14 In 2020, for example,
nine German climate activists (ranging in age from 15 to 24 years)
challenged national legislation that failed to ensure that future
generations would be protected from climate change. Their
suit was successful, and the German High Court (Bundesverfas-
sungsgericht) ordered the government to expand a 2019 law to
explicitly achieve climate protection.21
Many young people who are aware of climate change feel
overwhelmed by the enormity of the problem that older genera-
tions are bequeathing to them and by their limited voice and po-
wer in climate decision making.22 A recent Australian case study
revealed that young people feel powerless and stranded by older
generations in this climate emergency and feel overwhelmed
about their futures.22 ‘‘Climate anxiety’’ describes the feelings
of being overwhelmed and helpless in the face of the global
climate crisis and threat of environmental disaster.23 Environ-
mental grief and fears are profoundly affecting large numbers
of young people: 75% of 10,000 young people engaged in a
recent survey spanning ten countries reported that they thought
the future was frightening. Over half of the young people sur-
veyed thought humanity is doomed, and approximately two-
thirds reported feeling sad, afraid, and anxious about climate
change.7
Young people have lower perceived and often less actual con-
trol than adults in political and personal spheres.24 Conse-
quently, children are more at risk for the mental health impacts
associated with climate change, including anxiety.25 The
COVID-19 pandemic is likely to have exacerbated these feelings
of helplessness by preventing young people from taking collab-
orative (and in-person) action.26 However, recent research
suggests that eco-anger can predict positive mental health out-
comes and greater engagement in climate activism and action in
young people.27 Efforts to constructively channel anger as a key
adaptive and emotional driver of climate action should be
increasingly considered.
Many representations of climate change in the public domain
(e.g., the media) aim to evoke fear, urgency, and despair, and
these negative ‘‘doom and gloom’’ messages can increase

Perspective
Box 1. The types of literacy presented in this paper as needed to
empower young people of all ages
Science literacy is a person’s understanding of scientific
concepts (e.g., associated with climate change), phenomena, and
processes and their ability to apply this knowledge to interpret
new, and at times non-scientific, situations.30
Ocean literacy is a person’s understanding of the ocean’s
influence on society and society’s influence on the ocean.31,32 It is
not just a measure of what a person knows but also an indication of
their attitudes, behaviors, and ability to communicate about ocean
issues.33
Critical media literacy is a person’s ability to interpret personal
biases reflected in media (including television, film, radio, music,
the press, the internet, and other digital communication forms) to
identify misinformation and propaganda and to understand how
the media are constructed.34,35
climate anxiety and grief.28,29 Constructive, solution-oriented
framings, combined with improved science literacy (Box 1),
can enable young people to understand and interpret climate
and ocean science in ways that do not overwhelm or cause feel-
ings of anxiety. If such messages are made more accessible,
these could link to more positive empowerment and feelings,
as well as outcomes, for young people.
While a growing number of young people are aware of climate
change and other environmental problems, many young people
increasingly experience ‘‘nature disconnectedness’’: the loss of
relationships with the natural world.36,37 This disconnectedness
is largely driven by ‘‘extinction of experience,’’ the progressive
loss of interactions and potential for interactions between people
and nature.38,39 Nature disconnectedness has been shown to
negatively affect people’s attitudes and values of nature,
including their willingness to protect it.39 The current generation
of young people is probably more disconnected from nature than
any previous generation.40 This is concerning, as evidence from
the field of ecopsychology shows that disconnection from nature
is a root cause of environmentally destructive behavior.41
Learning and physical experiences in nature support environ-
mental identities and sense of place, but these experiences
have declined in recent decades.42 Young people spend less
time in nature than previous generations39,43 because of dwin-
dling opportunities to experience nature (e.g., as a result of ur-
banization, indoor lifestyles, and increased screen time). This is
particularly true in the context of the ocean (especially among
Western and urban societies), where most people have limited
opportunity to experience marine environments on and in
the water.
Pro-environmental behavior in adulthood begins in childhood,
and limited opportunities to engage with nature can reduce
young people’s environmental understanding and emotional
connections to nature into the future.44,45 Opportunities to expe-
rience and interact with nature change throughout life and are
likely to differ between geographic, socioeconomic, and cultural
groups.46 For example, disconnectedness to the ocean is
strongly linked to limited awareness of marine environments
and issues.47 This highlights the need for young people to
interact with and experience marine nature as a means to
ll
improve their understanding of the ocean (i.e., ocean literacy;
Box 1)
The decline of nature connectedness among young people is
notable.36 Evidence from the US shows that most young people
spend more time indoors on electronic media than they do
outside in nature;43 56% of US children aged 8–12 years and
69% of teens aged 13–18 years watch online videos every
day.48 Teens in the US consume approximately 7.5 h of screen
time daily, not including screen use at school or for homework.48
Further, as a result of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,
daily screen time is likely at an all-time high.
Screen time, particularly social media, can play a positive role
in empowering young people to take action on climate and
ocean issues by enabling them to connect with peers and to
share their experiences, perspectives, and motivations. Howev-
er, increased screen time can also come with the increased risk
of exposure to misinformation (information that is simply incor-
rect) and disinformation (information that is created with the
intent to deceive). Collectively these are known as ‘‘fake
news,’’49 which mimics news media content in form but not in
organizational process or intent.50 The spread of fake news is
supported by the excess amounts of information that young peo-
ple are exposed to each day. Screen time (and social media)
heightens the risk of exposing young people to climate change
denialism and associated extremism:51 climate change denial
is often expressed in fake news that is repeated across all me-
dia.52 For example, YouTube—a widespread media platform of
youths in the US53—has directed millions of people to view
climate misinformation videos via its ‘‘up next’’ recommendation
algorithm and has received extensive criticism for promoting
content that spreads conspiracy and misinformation.54 This
excess of misinformation, coupled with nature disconnected-
ness and limited science, ocean, and media literacy (described
above), reduces young people’s ability to recognize true from
false or incorrect information about the climate and ocean.
Young people do not necessarily have the knowledge or skills
necessary to critically examine and identify fake news.52 They
require guidance and support to develop more critical ap-
proaches to the consumption of information and associated
thinking.55 The complexities of navigating accurate information
on climate change in an ever-changing world render it crucial
that adults equip young people with the skills and opportunities
to be able to access the best available climate and ocean sci-
ence in engaging and empowering ways. Critical media literacy
can also inform science literacy (Box 1), thereby building young
people’s ability to identify, understand, and apply valid scientific
knowledge in their everyday behavior and decision making.
Critical media literacy has become an essential requirement for
science learning. Critical media literacy enables young students
to critically access media messages (and also produce their own
media) so that they can be empowered to have a voice in
society52 and to shape their sustainable future.
EMPOWERING YOUNG PEOPLE
Transformative actions that help adults to collaborate and
engage with young people in climate and ocean science are ur-
gently needed to help provide young people with the skills,
knowledge, experiences, and agency to shape their sustainable
One Earth 5, August 19, 2022 863
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Perspective

Table 1. Five strategies for adults working to empower young people with climate and ocean science in the UN Decade of Ocean
Science for Sustainable Development (2021–2030); some of these strategies can help to address multiple challenges faced by young
people today and thus include multiple actions for empowerment
Outcomes for a co-created
Challenges faced by Strategies for Example actions to implement strategies ‘‘sustainable 2030’’ as
young people today empowerment (and empower young people) envisioned by the UN Ocean Decade
Social (in)justice (1) inclusion of diverse champion young people as environmental a diverse next generation of ocean
voices leaders (by providing contextual and local- leaders who value inclusivity and a
scale dialogue opportunities) wide range of perspectives
amplify Indigenous and traditional
knowledge (by supporting peer-to-peer
and intergenerational learning)
Climate anxiety (2) active, dialogue- develop interactive learning opportunities deeper understandings of climate
based science learning (e.g., citizen science, science festivals, and the ocean that enable young
and mentoring programs) people to communicate their
equip young people with nuanced concerns and cope with anxiety
understandings of climate and ocean and foster their empowered civic action
science (by connecting them to
optimistic but realistic information)
Nature (3) connection to nature engage young people in nature development of pro-environmental
disconnectedness experiences that appeal to all behaviors and attitudes that young
the senses (via interactive activities, people retain and act on into adulthood
including citizen science, clean-ups,
habitat restoration actions, and
nature camps)
support young people in roles as
environmental stewards within their
communities (by connecting them
to their environmental values and
compassion for nature)
Fake news (4) critical thinking skills ‘‘inoculate’’ young people against mis- cognitive immunity to mis- and
and disinformation (by supporting their disinformation and young people’s
development of critical media literacy enhanced ability to contribute to
through school curricula and at home) decision making
Lack of agency and (5) co-created visions of provide opportunities for young people skills and agency to become actors
skills to cope with a sustainable future to lead climate and ocean dialogue for change; positioning young people
challenges both (to give them a voice and agency in to play an active role in setting global
today and in the future shaping their future) climate and ocean agendas
support and champion youth-led
environmental networks

future.56 Improving young people’s understanding of climate and
ocean science is key to supporting their active contribution to
dialogue and decision making.57 This science learning and
engagement should not oversimplify the complexities of climate
and ocean issues in an ever-changing world or exacerbate the
anxiety already felt by many young people.
Transformative action also underpins achieving the aims of the
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and associated
global initiatives, including the vision of the UN Ocean Decade.
Diversity, equity, and access to participation (i.e., geographi-
cally, culturally, and socioeconomically) must all be strength-
ened to support the aims of the UN Ocean Decade.58 Intersec-
tionality will need to be a central focus if young people across
the globe are to be empowered to connect and contribute to their
sustainable future.
In this section, we outline strategies for pro-actively preparing
young people to meet global climate and ocean challenges in the
context of the UN Ocean Decade and beyond. The five strategies
emerged from a narrative-based review of examples from theory
and practice, and some build upon experiences from organiza-
tions that do not typically publish in the academic literature.
These strategies intend to inform actions for programs and initia-
tives engaging young people in climate and ocean issues to help
shape a more sustainable future. We selected these strategies in
an iterative process drawing from our collective expertise as re-
searchers and practitioners in the fields of climate and ocean sci-
ence research, engagement, and education and using the
following criteria: we sought strategies that (1) meet the chal-
lenges that young people face while growing up today (Table 1),
(2) are evidence based and have had demonstrated success in
other contexts, and (3) represent recent inter- and transdisci-
plinary developments for young people’s engagement, science
literacy, trust, and endorsement of science.59 These strate-
gies are
(1) Inclusion of diverse voices

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Perspective
Figure 1. ‘‘Plastic campers’’ conducting a microplastic survey at a
local beach in Eleuthera, Bahamas
Credit: Bahamas Plastic Movement.
(2) Active dialogue-based science learning
(3) Connection to nature
(4) Critical thinking skills
(5) Co-created visions of a sustainable future
The strategies consolidate novel contributions—including
recent research and emerging successes—from diverse fields.
They are intended to empower transformative action by sup-
porting adults to engage with young people, empowering a
diversity of young people to engage in dialogues at local, na-
tional, regional, and international scales with scientists, deci-
sion makers, and other stakeholders to co-create and shape
their own sustainable future. Inspiring examples of young peo-
ple becoming agents of change60 not only point in the right
direction but also show that empowerment is a two-way pro-
cess that depends on co-design with youth. In this sense,
adults should engage with young people in their languages
and interests, and through their platforms and social media,
to help identify ways to empower young people to become
agents of change.
Strategy 1: Inclusion of diverse voices
Opportunities for young people to actively shape and learn about
the future of oceans and climate, as envisioned by the UN Ocean
Decade, must be situated within supportive social contexts and
be free from discrimination. However, science and climate
engagement opportunities vary disparately across the globe,
reflecting known social injustice issues, including education
inequalities. As such, the first strategy is the inclusion of diverse
voices: broader engagement of diverse young people, with a
particular focus on engaging groups that have traditionally
been under-represented, to enhance representation of different
ethnicities, sexual orientations, religions, regions, and languages
of origin. Given the diversity of young people globally, however,
we emphasize that effort is needed to address the range of ineq-
uity (intersectionality) too. This strategy aims to support the UN
Ocean Decade in achieving ‘‘generational, gender, and
geographic diversity in all its manifestations.’’11 It emphasizes
creating more inclusive climate and ocean literacy initiatives
and fostering a diverse generation of young people in science
ll
learning and action. Implementing strategy 1 in practice will
require developing partnerships and co-operation between
science (e.g., celebrating women in science, technology, engi-
neering, and mathematics [STEM]), media (e.g., championing
science diversity), and civic organizations (e.g., global initiatives
such as Fridays for Future [FFF] or Scouts).
Where climate and ocean literacy initiatives are tailored to rele-
vant issues and groups, the potential for knowledge uptake and
development of pro-environmental attitudes behavior change is
increased.61 The practical applications of this strategy (and
those proposed below) should therefore critically consider the
context in which they might occur, including personal experi-
ences, access, and cultural perspectives. As an example, the
Bahamas Plastic Movement hosts the Plastic Pollution
Education and Ocean Conservation Camp, a free summer pro-
gram for local young people aged 9–15 years (Figure 1). The
camp aims to empower participants to become environmental
leaders in their local areas and to tackle the issue of plastic pollu-
tion by using creative approaches that address their needs and
engage their specific interests. The program provides ‘‘acces-
sible science opportunities’’ by ‘‘building a community’’ through
which young people can connect and learn. As a result of the
camp, in 2018, a youth delegation from this program inspired
the local government to adopt a policy to phase out plastic
bags by 2020. Similarly, the London-based science communica-
tion group Native Scientist hosts science workshops for children
across Europe and is tailored to children who have educational
disadvantages in science (e.g., different languages of origin).
This group works to engage children from diverse backgrounds
in science learning that celebrates and promotes cultural and
linguistic diversity in science and aims to inspire them to pursue
careers in science and technology.62
Diverse gender engagement in the initiatives and activities of
the UN Ocean Decade is also key. Women are under-represented
in science and technology careers in most countries.63,64 These
disparities reflect cultural factors and implicit biases experienced
by women and other minorities that perpetuate the gender gap in
science. The disparities lead young people to have fewer gender
role models to inspire their engagement in ocean and climate
research.65 Further, because men have been shown to ‘‘discount’’
the future more heavily than women,66 the dearth of women and
other minorities in leadership positions (scientific and otherwise)
could limit opportunities to innovate climate and ocean science
for sustainable future outcomes.
Further, gender-science stereotyping (e.g., masculine visions
of science) could hinder young girls’ self-identification with sci-
ence, while initiatives that reduce gender bias are more likely
to increase science career aspirations among girls.67 Initiatives
such as the UN International Day of Women and Girls in
Science and the Women in Science program developed by the
Australian National Maritime Museum already champion female
science leaders to inspire young people to pursue opportunities
and careers in science. Girls should also be championed to excel
in science. In 2020, Gitanjali Rao, a 15-year-old from the US, was
named as Time Magazine’s first Time’s Kid of the Year for her
work inspiring a global community of young innovators to collab-
orate on solving global challenges. Examples such as these
use the force of inspiration to empower young people to affect
and achieve change, and they demonstrate how adults can
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Figure 2. Young people can be mentors to their peers and younger
children
Here, a teen volunteer mentor from the Danish Science club (Vi-
denskabsklubben) helps a young participant in a youth-led after-school sci-
ence club. Credit: Videnskabsklubben.
champion young people to celebrate youth achievements and
inspire their peers.
Efforts to engage Indigenous and traditional knowledge are
also key to improving diversity in actions and supporting wide-
spread engagement. Indigenous knowledge provides insights
on complex co-existence with natural environments that can
guide contextual connections to nature and innovative visions
for climate action.68 The concept of ‘‘two-eyed seeing’’ (i.e.,
learning from Indigenous as well as mainstream knowledge) pro-
vides space to pair diverse insights into co-creating equitable
and sustainable futures.69 Initiatives that share different cultural
experiences, practices, and meanings can shape young peo-
ple’s awareness and understanding of nature (including climate
and ocean issues) given that young people develop understand-
ings and self-identify from their social groups.70 For example, the
Deadly Science and Deadly Women initiatives in Australia inspire
young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders (aged 13–18 years)
with science through projects in wild and remote locations, sur-
rounded by strong (and often female) Indigenous leaders who
motivate young people to pursue activity and careers in science.
In the US, Native like Water is an initiative that engages thou-
sands of young (and adult) Indigenous volunteers in science,
Indigenous learning, outdoor education, conservation, and cul-
tural self-exploration to support intergenerational exchanges of
ocean education.
In addition, peer-to-peer and youth-led learning can diversify
opportunities to reach and include young people in climate and
ocean action. To date, there have been many examples of
youth-led organizations worldwide, including the child- and
youth-led movement FFF. This movement not only organizes
climate marches and demonstrations but also helps young peo-
ple to form collective identity in taking action on climate.71 Else-
where, in the US, for example, the Youth Ocean Conservation
Summits, held across multiple locations each year, provide
young people with opportunities to learn about ocean
science directly with researchers. These summits can inspire
them to collaborate with their peers to develop action plans
866 One Earth 5, August 19, 2022
Perspective
for their own ocean conservation projects through the
Global Youth Ocean Conservation Team. Similarly, in the
Videnskabsklubben program in Denmark (Figure 2), professional
scientists and university students provide mentorship to teens to
lead after-school science clubs for younger children (aged 9–14
years). The learning materials for these clubs are co-designed by
professional scientists in dialogue with practitioners and the
youth mentors. The defining part of the clubs is that no adults
participate in the mentor sessions with younger children. The Vi-
denskabsklubben program provides resources (i.e., physical
learning materials and equipment for experiments) and opportu-
nities (i.e., direct engagement with scientists) that enable young
people to communicate and educate children about science on
topics such as evolution, microbiology, and biodiversity.
Strategy 2: Active, dialogue-based science learning
Opportunities for climate and ocean learning and exploration that
foster inspiration, recreation, and discovery in young people can
help to advance visions of a sustainable future (e.g., in the context
of the UN Ocean Decade). Active, dialogue-based science
learning refers to multi-directional (as opposed to one-way)
learning and teaching that inspires and fosters dialogue and
deeper, mutual understanding of climate and ocean issues. Strat-
egy 2 aims to empower young people in communicating and over-
coming the feelings of being overwhelmed, as discussed above.18
Strategy 2 can start with formal and informal science education at
a young age. Active, dialogue-based science learning promotes a
deeper understanding and appreciation of the scale of climate
and ocean change. It also supports the development of pro-envi-
ronmental behaviors and civic action.
Marine education, for example, plays a role in improving ocean
literacy and increasing marine citizenship, i.e., the rights and re-
sponsibilities of an individual toward the marine environ-
ment.47,72,73 A number of countries now include climate and
ocean science in their national curricula;74 for example, in
2020, Italy became the first country in Europe to make climate
change curricula compulsory in schools. Other countries have
put forward non-compulsory curricula for inclusion in schools
but have yet to cement this necessary foundational learning.
For example, the Explorers Education Programme in Ireland
engaged with teachers to develop a marine science curriculum
(i.e., lesson plans and activities) that can be integrated into sub-
ject strands across the primary school curriculum. The various
types of literacy (presented in Box 1) and knowledge can be
enhanced through improvements in school curricula, although
an assessment of the effectiveness of different education activ-
ities is needed.
The diversity of materials that support learning inside and
outside the classroom is expanding (Table 2). Examples of inter-
active learning initiatives include the child-focused scientific
journal Frontiers for Young Minds, which is edited and reviewed
by children; the virtual Ocean School, based in Canada, which
engages children (and adults) in immersive visual learning; and
the program Skype a Scientist, which links real scientists to chil-
dren in classrooms to discuss and learn about science.75
Learning about climate change and ocean issues through con-
versations empowers young people to develop skills for relaying
this information, including generating climate awareness and
concern among their parents and other adults.76 In this way,

Perspective
Table 2. Examples of interactive and experiential learning about science and nature
Initiatives Description of youth engagement
Citizen science young people engage with scientists
to contribute data to research (strategy 3)
Youth-led science young people educate their peers on
communication and climate and ocean science, sometimes
education in collaboration with adults
(e.g., professional scientists)
(strategies 1 and 2)
youth influencers promote science
communication through social media
challenges (e.g., TikTok and
Instagram) (strategy 1)
Youth-led mentoring young people organize and/or lead
programs science learning and environmental
action programs for youths their own
ages or younger (strategies 1 and 5)
Youth summits and Donor- or government-sponsored
ambassador programs public-awareness programs equip
young people with resources and
opportunities to connect with their
peers and climate and/or ocean
experts to increase ocean awareness
and action (strategies 1 and 5)
Museums, aquaria, centers for exhibitions and learning
and ocean education that provide opportunities for young
centers people to connect with science in
interactive ways (strategy 2)
some centers offer experiences
(e.g., snorkeling, scientific cruises,
and guided outings), while others
offer volunteer, summer camp,
mentoring programs, and outreach
to schools77 (strategies 2 and 3)
Virtual initiatives interactive websites and virtual
(steered by scientists) learning events engage remote
audiences of young people in
climate and ocean issues (strategy 2)
Games interactive games can uncover fake
news and help develop critical thinking
through games (strategy 4)
science communication can also support the transfer of critical
thinking among young people.
While young people need to be equipped with the skills to ac-
cess and critically understand scientific information, knowledge
alone is unlikely to motivate pro-environmental behaviors and
climate action. Dogmatically providing people with scientific infor-
mation (i.e., following a knowledge deficit science communication
model; Figure 3) is not enough to yield solutions, compel action, or
generate behavior change.78,79 Moreover, science-based learning
opportunities based solely on providing information do not come
with a moral vision or ethical position for how young people can
engage and act with current and emerging climate issues.80
ll
Examples
d LiMPETS (US)
d Marine Debris Toolkit
d Redmap (Australia)
d Zooniverse (global)
d Virtual Reef Diver (Australia)
d Fridays for Future (global)
d Extinction Rebellion
d Alliance for Climate Education
d EcoTok and #ScienceIsMagic on TikTok
d Frontiers for Young Minds
d Youth for the Environment
d Bahamas Plastic Movement
d Videnskabsklubben (Denmark)
d Ocean Bridge (Canada)
d Heirs to Our Oceans (US)
d All-Atlantic Ocean Youth Ambassadors (Atlantic)
d IUCN Global Youth Summit
d Nordic Youth Biodiversity Summit
d Australian National Maritime Museum
d Shedd Aquarium Teen Council (Chicago, US)
d Field Museum of Natural History Tween and
Teen Volunteer Programs (Chicago, US)
d Monterey Bay Aquarium Teen Conservation Leaders (US)
d Marine Educational Center (Sweden)
d Skype a Scientist
d Ocean School (Canada)
d Big History Project (Australia)
d Exploring By the Seat of Your Pants (global)
d Little Blue Letter (global)
d #SaveOurOceans TikTok
d Bad News
d Cranky Uncle
d GoViral!
It is unrealistic that scientists alone will take on the responsibil-
ity of communicating their research to wider society, including
young people. However, scientists can play a key role in making
climate and ocean information more widely available and acces-
sible by collaborating with professional science communicators,
youth media experts, and educators to ensure that information is
appropriate for various audiences, including youth. As such,
mechanisms and resources for scientists to effectively engage
with communication and education experts while focusing on
their research are needed. Scientific and academic systems of
research (and engagement) also need to adapt to support
responsible scientific communication. In particular, it is essential
One Earth 5, August 19, 2022 867
 ll
Figure 3. Deficit and dialogue models of science communication
that scientists and communicators be trained to communicate
science in ways that can inspire rather than overwhelm. There
also is a need for more participatory and active approaches to-
ward learning and engagement (i.e., dialogue model of science
communication; Figure 3) that can support the application of sci-
ence into practice and action.
There are many activities that engage and motivate young
people in interactive and dialogue-based learning experi-
ences.81 For example, the traveling education program
Science Circus Pacific supplements existing classroom learning
on climate for Pacific Island Nations young people. The program
engages young people in entertaining experiments (e.g., flying
bottle rockets, which use water to launch) and workshops
focused on STEM innovation to empower them to be science
champions in their communities. In Australia, the STEM
Professionals in Schools program facilitates partnerships that
bring local climate and marine scientists into schools to interact
and collaborate with teachers on developing and delivering sci-
ence content; students are exposed to STEM in interactive and
memorable ways, including through hands-on demonstrations
from scientists and through specialist STEM clubs in schools.
In the US, teen volunteer experiences at the John G. Shedd
Aquarium and the Field Museum of Natural History bolster inter-
est in STEM and provide urban access to learning about nature.
The Field Museum Youth Conservation Action programs work to
inspire civic action by improving science literacy and equipping
young people with the knowledge and skills to care for nature in
their local areas.
Considering the global rise in climate anxiety, there is a
growing need for effective conversations (e.g., Curious Climate
for Schools) that can communicate information (e.g., relating to
ocean success stories) that is accurate and optimistic82 and en-
courages people to collaborate in action for a cause.82,83 Scien-
tists, educators, and others working to engage young people in
climate and ocean action should focus on positive message
framings, for example, by highlighting ‘‘bright spots’’—outliers
that perform significantly better than would be expected—to
promote feelings of optimism (for benefits relating to the power
868 One Earth 5, August 19, 2022
Perspective
of optimistic thinking, see Kelsey83). Optimistic climate mes-
sages (e.g., delivered by school teachers or professional science
communicators) that provide young people with nuanced appre-
ciation of the complexity of climate impacts can assist them to
cope more readily with climate change into the future.84 Solu-
tion-oriented discussions can also help them to cope and think
more constructively about climate change.
Strategy 3: Connection to nature
The UN Ocean Decade aims to inspire connection and care for the
oceans; thus, strategy 3 focuses on supporting young people’s
connection to nature. Nature connectedness is subjective and
multidimensional and is influenced by social factors, including is-
sues of equity and access, personality, learning experiences, and
cognitive factors.85 Knowledge alone is not a route to achieving
nature connectedness. Rather, nature connectedness is sug-
gested to manifest across five pathways: emotion, beauty, con-
tact, meaning, and compassion.36,85 This strategy refers to a
need for repeated exposure (time spent) and positive experiences
in nature. It includes removing barriers to accessing nature,
increasing opportunities to experience nature, and engaging
young people in learning that can appeal to all of the senses.
Superficial or simplified contact with nature is unlikely to sup-
port deep connection that can endure into later life and adult-
hood.86 Emotional attachment to nature is essential to inspire
connectedness.36 People need to feel an affinity and connection
to nature if they are to be willing to protect it.37 Exposure to nat-
ural (as opposed to urban) environments, repeated visits to these
natural areas, and having access to nature near home are all
factors positively related to supporting enduring nature connect-
edness.44 Moreover, learning about the environment directly in
nature, or close to nature, improves environmental understand-
ing.73 Positive experiences of nature in childhood are central to
developing and retaining pro-environmental behaviors and
attitudes.40,70,73 While virtual experiences of nature offer
some potential benefits (e.g., encouraging pro-environmental
behaviors37), they fail to provide the same benefits gained from
the multi-sensory experience of actually being in nature.87

Perspective
Implementing this strategy in practice requires supporting ac-
tivities and programs that enable young people to experience
and connect with nature, including immersive (e.g., wild camps)
and interactive (e.g., citizen science) activities. Recent evidence
has demonstrated that people’s nature connection is a stronger
predictor of their environmental behavior than is their environ-
mental knowledge44 and that people who are more connected
to nature show greater engagement in pro-environmental behav-
iors;45 this is also observed in young people.88 Further, bottom-
up (e.g., grassroots) initiatives are positively associated with
supporting the development of pro-environmental identities.89
Therefore, actions taken to implement strategy 2 should focus
on developing contextual and/or local-scale activities (strategy
1) to connect young people with nature. For example, the
Children and Nature Network is a growing global movement
working to reverse the trend of an indoor childhood and to
engage young people with the benefits of nature through pro-
grams developed at local, place-based scales.
Activities that involve young people in meaningful experiences
that engage senses, emotions, meaning, and compassion90
include youth-based nature camps, learning expeditions,91 and
citizen science.92 Successful examples from ‘‘forest camps’’ or
‘‘schools’’ provide important lessons for connecting young peo-
ple to the ocean. Pioneering examples are wildschools, which
provide sensory activities and emotional interactions with nature
and support young people’s ability to cultivate environmental
values and compassionate understandings of the natural
environment.93 Similarly, empirical evidence from Camp 2
Grow in the US found that programs can foster nature affinity
among young people and independence and problem-solving
skills, which in combination empower them to become environ-
mental stewards within their communities;94 for example, young
people were tasked to create a ‘‘stewardship action plan’’ to
enable them to envision and plan how they would solve environ-
mental challenges in their homes and communities, which was
demonstrated to enhance their responsibility.
Successful implementation of strategy 3 has the potential to
foster pro-environmental behavior and stewardship and to
improve mental health and resilience. A growing body of evi-
dence demonstrates the positive links and value of nature expe-
riences for physical mental health and well-being (for a review,
see Bratman et al.95). Increased contact with and connection to
nature is associated with positive outcomes for physical and
mental health and well-being.37 Providing opportunities for young
people to interact and connect with nature is thus likely to posi-
tively contribute to their mental health and resilience (e.g., in the
context of climate anxiety). However, young people who are ‘‘na-
ture deficient’’ have reduced opportunity to experience physio-
logical and psychological benefits of connecting with nature
(Keith et al.88). Therefore, increasing opportunities for young peo-
ple worldwide to experience nature is critical. Removing social
and physical barriers to accessing nature will require acknowl-
edging and then addressing existing environmental and social
(in)justice issues,95 further supporting efforts focused on strategy
1. For example, indirect (as opposed to intentional) interactions
are often the most prevalent way that people engage with nature
daily in urban environments;96 therefore, locally relevant interven-
tions, such as increasing urban greenspace and providing young
people with opportunities and encouragement to engage in out-
ll
door recreational activities, are key.39 For example, urban plan-
ning efforts can focus on removing barriers to access nature
and enhance people’s opportunities to experience nature (e.g.,
improving access to parks, on-street greenspace, and urban wa-
ter features).97 Young people, especially children, often do not
have the same opportunities to access natural areas as adults
do; therefore, special accommodations might need to be made
to make natural areas more accessible to them.
Strategy 4: Critical thinking skills
Critical thinking skills are foundational and essential skills for
young people (and anyone) actively participating in decision-
making processes. Strategy 4 outlines how critical thinking skills
contribute to developing science and media literacy, enabling
young people to recognize information that is created to mislead,
confuse, and obstruct dialogue on climate and ocean science.
This strategy aims to enhance cognitive immunity to mis- and
disinformation. It also aims to improve young people’s ability
to access accurate climate and ocean information to enhance
young people’s capacity to contribute to informed societal
discourse and decision making.
As outlined above, increased screentime among young peo-
ple, and concomitant exposure to excess information, reduces
their ability to recognize true from false. It also makes it difficult
for them to recognize incorrect information on climate and the
ocean. Solutions to reducing the spread and consumption of on-
line disinformation can be achieved in numerous practical ways,
e.g., through changing search-engine settings or display
algorithms or improving regulation and fact-checking tools.
However, the continued efforts of fake news creators render it
necessary to teach young people critical media literacy (Box 1)
and equip them to identify fake ocean and climate science con-
tent and disinformation.98,99
Much progress has been made in the field of critical media
literacy both in theory52,100,101,102 and in practice.103,104 For
example, game-based initiatives to ‘‘inoculate’’ (i.e., preemp-
tively protect) people against influential misinformation by ex-
plaining misleading rhetorical techniques,101 including the Bad
News, Cranky Uncle, and GoViral! games, have been played
by millions of people and shown to be successful in increasing
people’s understanding of science and helping them to spot
fake news.103,104 These inoculation approaches can guide initia-
tives and programs in efforts to support young people to develop
cognitive immunity to the mis- and disinformation they will inev-
itably be exposed to via online or other forms of media.105
At present, Finland is recognized as a leader in Europe for
fighting disinformation and can provide a strong example for other
countries to follow. In particular, its innovative national fact-check-
ing agency Faktabaari (FactBar) creates voter literacy kits for
schools and the wider public. The Faktabaari initiative is run by
volunteers in collaboration with the national education body to
create an information literacy curriculum for schools and aims to
equip young people with the critical skills necessary (i.e., logic-
based inoculation) for accessing and assessing truthful informa-
tion from online and media sources (i.e., critical media literacy).
Strategy 5: Co-created visions of a sustainable future
Increasing opportunities to co-create conversations and
dialogue between young people and science researchers,
One Earth 5, August 19, 2022 869
 ll
practitioners, and educators is key to defining the actions and
changes needed for engaging and empowering young people
to achieve climate and ocean sustainability.16 Strategy 5 empha-
sizes co-creating visions of a sustainable future, including
providing opportunities for deliberative discussion with and be-
tween young people and actors across society. Specifically,
this strategy entails increasing dialogue with a diversity of actors
and linking young people to decision-making processes,
creating opportunities for young people to co-create their own
actions toward achieving a sustainable future. Implementation
of this strategy includes enabling youth networks (e.g., peer-
led learning; strategy 1: inclusion of diverse voices), connecting
young people to environmental programs and activities (e.g., cit-
izen science; strategy 2: active, dialogue-based, science
learning), and giving them a seat at the table to make decisions
about their own input and contributions (i.e., environmental
and marine citizenship). This strategy relies on successful imple-
mentation of the previous four strategies and has the potential to
achieve successful outcomes by empowering young people to
play an active role in setting the course for a global agenda
that shapes their sustainable future.
Fundamental to co-creating solutions is increasing young peo-
ple’s understanding of the science while also fostering engage-
ment that supports self-efficacy. Efforts to develop educational
curricula inclusive of young people’s voices can create innova-
tive learning experiences that drive ‘‘youth-framed potentiality
of empowerment’’ in climate and ocean science.13 For example,
the Climate Change + Me program (based in Australia) engages
young people in climate change research and co-creating
climate change curricula to provide them with a voice (and
agency) in shaping their own future.
Connecting diverse disciplines, sectors, and communities in
an inclusive manner increases the likelihood of garnering trans-
disciplinary expertise and resources conducive to achieving suc-
cessful outcomes for environmental programs.106 Providing
young people with opportunities for deliberative discussion
about climate change, for example, can be a strategy to enable
them to better understand their perspectives and the perspec-
tives of others.107 Thus, inclusive discussion and decision mak-
ing can help remove perceived barriers to collaborative action.
The youth-led Kids against Plastic initiative, for example, en-
gages diverse communities of young people, adults, industries,
and decision makers in ‘‘plastic-clever’’ conversations that
have led to collaborative action (i.e., behavioral change) against
plastic use across levels of society.
Empowering young people to become actors for change
within their communities and in governance processes requires
new and more integrative approaches to public participation.108
Youth ambassador programs, for example, can position and
empower young people to act as agents of change.109 The All-
Atlantic Ocean Youth Ambassadors program engages young
people in education and communication activities, where they
can connect with politicians, scientists, and other leaders.110
The aim of the program is to build a network of engaged young
leaders (e.g., early career scientists) and equip them with skills
to become actors for change within their communities and in
governance processes in the Atlantic region. By networking
with peers, these ambassadors understand the international
context well, and they then apply this knowledge to local
870 One Earth 5, August 19, 2022
Perspective
engagement activities to champion and progress change at
community levels. Lessons can also be learned from the Wild
Center’s Youth Climate Program, which works to connect and
empower young people to take action on climate change;77 their
online Youth Have Power seminar series brings together young
people from around the world to exchange their experiences in
climate dialogue and action.
Organizing meetings between young people and diverse
stakeholders can lead to positive outcomes.111 The Global
Shapers Community, for example, aims to empower young peo-
ple (who they define as under the age of 30 years) to play an
active role in shaping local- to global-scale agendas on sustain-
ability and the future. The community is a network of young peo-
ple who connect (through technology and in-person events) to
collaborate and share knowledge and to explore and develop
actionable solutions to contemporary challenges, including
ocean and climate change.
Further, empowering young people with a say in co-creating
their future requires that their voices not only be included but
also be celebrated in informing decision making about the future.
Recent and emerging historically important legal decisions
emphasize a moral obligation to protect future generations
from the impacts of climate change. In 2020, eight Australian
young people were successful in their case to prevent approval
for a coal mine in their area by citing that the government had a
duty of care to protect young people against future harm from
climate change. Their effort was supported and guided by
Sister Brigid Arthur (an 86-year-old nun and former teacher),
who acted as litigation guardian in their case. In Europe, the Eu-
ropean Court of Human Rights (Strasbourg Court) ordered EU
state governments to respond to a critical climate lawsuit lodged
by six Portuguese young people (after their experiences of
increasing forest fires in their home country) and, importantly,
was enabled by adults (i.e., environmental and climate law ex-
perts) from the Global Legal Action Network. Young people
cannot be included in decision making without the support of
adults. Decision makers, and other relevant actors, including
knowledge brokers, media professionals, youth communication
experts, and educators, can (co-)develop the frameworks and
opportunities needed to enable the young to engage in decisions
on climate and ocean action.
CONCLUSIONS
Young people are increasingly aware and anxious about climate
and ocean change. Although they will continue to carry the
burden of this change, they are also able to influence the trajec-
tory of future climate decisions. We presented five strategies to
empower young people with ocean and climate science: inclu-
sion of diverse voices, active dialogue-based science learning,
connection to nature, critical thinking skills, and co-created vi-
sions of a sustainable future. We believe that these strategies
will be useful in improving communication and engagement be-
tween young people and the ocean-climate science community,
as well as global sustainability initiatives such as the UN Ocean
Decade (Box 2) and beyond. In the context of the UN Ocean
Decade, there is a need for an assessment of the types of inter-
active and experiential activities (i.e., Table 2) currently under-
way, which can provide insights (and potentially a burgeoning
 ll
Perspective

Box 2. Implementing the five strategies in context: Achieving the vision of the UN Ocean Decade

Today’s young people are the agents of change who are most likely to succeed in climate and ocean action to achieve sustainability
goals. Here, we outline how the five strategies can be implemented to support young people in initiatives in the context of the UN
Ocean Decade. The strategies can each be applied in isolation but are likely to achieve greater impact when implemented syner-
gistically. A description of specific ocean literacy actions that could be proposed for endorsement under the UN Ocean Decade (i.e.,
that can support the strategies) is beyond the scope of this article (but see Kelly et al.112) because these would need to consider
contextual specificities.
The UN Ocean Decade presents a ‘‘once-in-a-lifetime’’ opportunity to work together to create and share the science needed to sup-
port the sustainable use of the ocean. The UN Ocean Decade aims to achieve considerable progress on the following societal out-
comes: a clean ocean, a healthy and resilient ocean, a predicted ocean, a safe ocean, a sustainably harvested and productive
ocean, and a transparent and accessible ocean.
Now is a critical time to engage and empower young people in shaping their sustainable future. The five strategies—(1) inclusion of
diverse voices, (2) active dialogue-based science learning, (3) connection to nature, (4) critical thinking skills, and (5) co-created
visions of a sustainable future—can guide this engagement and empowerment in practice to achieve impact, for example, by in-
forming improved ocean learning and literacy (applying strategies 2 and 4), outlining ways to achieve physical (and equitable) ac-
cess to the ocean and climate and ocean learning (applying, e.g., strategies 1 and 3), and supporting progress toward an inspiring
and engaging ocean.
The Ocean Literacy with All program is tasked with enhancing capacity and behavior change and aims to implement activities and
projects that engage diverse groups on local to global scales. It aims to develop active and experiential climate and ocean learning
approaches and to engage young people in experiences of the ocean that motivate their pro-environmental behaviors and attitudes
(e.g., opportunities to apply strategies 2 and 3). The Decade’s Ocean Literacy Framework will also support Ocean Literacy with All.
The framework proposes that transformative impact (enhanced ocean literacy) requires improved understanding and appreciation
of the ocean (applying strategies 1 and 2), encouragement of positive behavior change and systems change (strategies 3 and 4), and
support for active citizenship and ownership of marine environments (applying, e.g., strategies 2 and 4).
The UN Ocean Decade aims to inspire this and future generations to connect with and value the ocean (strategy 3). Critical to this is
ensuring ‘‘that no one is left behind’’ (strategy 1). A core UN Ocean Decade objective is to enhance scientific knowledge and ca-
pacity development in regions and groups that are presently limited or disadvantaged (including minority groups, such as young
people). Achieving this inclusivity (strategies 1 and 5) will require convening new groups of actors that are inclusive of young people
to co-create pathways toward achieving UN Ocean Decade outcomes. The newly launched Generation Ocean aims to provide a
platform for mobilizing a generation of people to use ‘‘knowledge to create action.’’ This initiative, if it is to achieve its aims, will
need to pro-actively engage and inspire various actors to provide input into the platform. It must likewise provide a space where
youth involvement is encouraged, supported, and promoted and facilitate youth engagement across UN Ocean Decade initiatives.
The UN Ocean Decade must engage diverse stakeholders in co-creating innovative ideas, partnerships, and solutions to support its
goals, and this diversity necessarily includes young people. The five strategies could be applied under each UN Ocean Decade so-
cietal outcome and each objective of the Ocean Literacy with All. Initiatives should include, e.g., youth mentoring, youth summits,
volunteer programs, leadership skill programs, youth dialogues with decision makers, and interactive games that use foresighting to
imagine the future and build critical thinking skills. All programs endorsed by the UN Decade should be encouraged to seek oppor-
tunities to apply the strategies highlighted in this paper to empower young people with climate and ocean science. Today’s young
people will necessarily progress on sustainability initiatives beyond the UN Ocean Decade.

community of practice) to strengthen the implementation and
impact of the strategies.
In developing this paper, we (as adults) have challenged many
of our own naive assumptions and biased understandings con-
cerning youth empowerment and engagement. We have learned
a considerable amount in the process. We will continue to learn
as this conversation continues, particularly if our work and
research are co-developed with young people. Much of what
we have learned has arisen from reflecting on the many youth-
led and grassroots efforts highlighted above (e.g., the
Bahamas Plastic Pollution Education and Ocean Conservation
Camp, Videnskabsklubben Denmark, Deadly Women, FFF,
and Native like Water). Future research, dialogue, and action to
transform youth participation can synthesize lessons from these
and other cases. They can also help to illustrate how young peo-
ple can best be involved in designing and co-creating opportu-
nities and provide inspiring examples on how to support and
empower young people with climate and ocean science. Sup-
porting and collaborating with young people raises many ethical
questions related to youth vulnerability, relative power dy-
namics, and social justice and equity issues. Future work and
research should explore these ethical questions to inform future
considerations.
Today’s young people are future world leaders. Adults and
adult-led organizations have a responsibility to connect with
and empower young people on ocean and climate issues.
For example, decision makers can consider the strategies in
their actions on climate and ocean education. Educators can
employ participatory and dialogue-based approaches to their
teaching. Scientists can advocate for the use of high-quality
scientific information and collaborate with professional sci-
ence communicators to disseminate information. Science
communicators can strive for constructive, solution-oriented
messages that are not overwhelming. All adults, including

One Earth 5, August 19, 2022 871

 ll
parents and mentors, can provide young people with opportu-
nities to co-create dialogue on climate and ocean change. The
challenge now is to extend this much-needed conversation
into action by ensuring that we can collaboratively empower
young people across the globe to determine their own sus-
tainable future.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
M.S.W. and P.M. delivered this work under the MISSION ATLANTIC project,
funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Pro-
gram under grant agreement no. 639 862428. A.P. acknowledges the
generous funding of the World Maritime University (WMU)-Sasakawa Global
Ocean Institute by the Nippon Foundation, as well as the financial support of
the Land-to-Ocean Leadership Program provided by the Swedish Agency
for Marine and Water Management (SwAM), the German Federal Ministry of
Transport and Digital Infrastructure, and the Ministry of Science, Technology
and Innovation of Brazil. G.P. was supported by an ARC Future Fellowship.
We thank Kristal Ambrose, Laura Carballo Piñeiro, and three anonymous re-
viewers for their valuable comments.
AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS
M.S.W. conceived the study. R.K. and M.S.W. wrote the first draft. All co-au-
thors contributed to the development of the manuscript, including writing and
editing. R.K., M.S.W., and L.G.E. led the reviewing and editing process.
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